Dispensing apparatus



June 18, 1929. H. D. SMITH DISPENSING APPARATUS ,Filed Jan. 8; 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR Z M BY ATTORNEY June 18, 1929. I

H. D. SMITH DISPENSING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 8, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ATTORNEY June 18, 1929. H. 0. 'SMITH' DISPENSING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 8, 1925 I5 Sheets-Sheet 3 ATTORNEY Patented June 18, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARRY 1). SMITH, OF EAST ST. LOUIS, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR T ST. LOUIS PUMP &

EQ'UIIMENT COMPANY, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

DISPENSING APPARATUS.

Application filed January This invention relates to liquid-handling devices, and with regard to certain more specific features, to pumps.

Among the several objects of the invention may be noted the provision of a simple, ac-

curate and durable pump for pumping liquids such as oils; the provision of a pump which will permit a sample of the pumped oil to be seen and compared with other oils, possibly in sampling tubes; the provision of convenient means for locking the pump; and the provision of means for preventing waste of oil by dripping and the unsightliness attendant upon said dripping.

The invention accordingly comprises the features of construction, combinations of elements, and arrangements of parts, which are exemplified in the constructions hereinafter described and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the following claim.

In the accompanying drawings, in which is shown one of various possible embodiments of this invention,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the pump;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken from front to rear with certain parts shown in elevation;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view showing the pump in position on a supply tank and an alternate position of the drip tube.

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 5 is a horizontal section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 2.

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

Referring now more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, there is illustrated a preferably metallic pump cylinder 1, to whose upper and lower ends are clamped a head casting 3 and base casting 5 respectively. The said castings 3 and 5 are clamped together, with. the cylinder 1 between them, by means of three draw studs 7 and the nuts cooperating therewith.

The base casting 5 comprises a flat flanged portion 9 adapted to be bolted or otherwise fastened to the upper surface of an oil supply tank 11, over a hole 13 therein.

The base casting 5 is provided with an upper boss 15 properly bored to receive the pump cylinder 1 and draw studs 7. A. lower boss 17 is counter bored to communicate with 8, 1925. Serial No. 1,171.

the interior of the cylinder 1 and has screwed therein from below a suction pipe 19, said sluction pipe communicating with the cylinc er 1.

At the left and forwardly of the cylinder 1, on the flange 9, is provided a through-going boss or hearing 21. The bearing 21 serves to rotatably mount an ogee curved drip tube 23. The drip tube 23 has formed on its lower end a counter bored flange 25 adapted to fit over the top of the bearing 21. Screwed into the lower end of the drip tube, centrally of said flange 25, is the combination passage and gudgeon piece 27 rotatably mounted in said bearing 21. Fastened to the lower end of said piece 27, by means of a set screw 29 is the collar 31. The collar 31 prevents'removal of the drip tube 23. A coil spring 33 around said bearing 21, is fastened at one end to the set screw 29, and at its other end to a lug 35 fastened to the flange 9. Its purpose is to normally hold the drip tube in a drip-return posit-ion. The flange 25 prevents the entrance of dirt and water into the supply tank by way of the bearing 25.

To the lower end of the suction pipe 19 is screwed the foot valve 37. This valve 37, by means of the ball-check valve 39 therein,

permits a flow of oil up into the pipe 19-but permits of no downward reversal of this flow. A head of liquid oil normally in thesuction tube 19 keeps the ball check valve 39 normally seated. The foot valve 37 may be adjusted to a given elevation by means of screw threads 41 and locked in position by means of the stuffing gland 43 and packing 45. This adjustment is of advantage when itis desired to pump as much as possible from a tank. The gland 43 prevents losing the I prime of the pump by stopping a back flow, should the screw threads 41 leak.

Theupper or head casting 3 of the cylinder 1 comprises a flange 45 by means of which said head 3 is drawn down on cylinder 1. On said flange is provided a boss 47.

The boss 47 is concentrically bored with the cylinder 1 to receive a piston rod and rack 49. This bore forms a bearing 51. The bearing 51 is longitudinally slotted at 53. The piston rod and rack 49 is provided with teeth 55. (Figs. 2 and 4.)

Adapted to engage with the teeth 55 is the pinion 57. The pinion 57 is nested in a pocket 59 within the boss 47. The pinion 57 is made fast to a shaft 61 which shaft runs longitudinally of the pocket 59. A stufing gland 63 and packing 65 hold the pinion 57 in the meshed position. A washer 67 prevents any packing 65 from entering into the teeth of pinion 57.

The shaft 61 is provided at its outer end with a crank 69 and handle 71 therefor, by means of which the piston rod 49 may be manually raised or lowered.

concentrically formed with the bearing 51, and cut in the boss 47, is an annular slot 73 into which fits a glass cylinder 75. Interposed between bottom of the glass cylinder 75 and the head 3 is a gasket 77. The glass cylinder 75 is adapted to surround the piston rod 49 when said rod is in its upper positions and is preferably of the same diameter and same thickness of glass as used in making oil sample bottles, the purpose of which will be herein made clear. I

Screwed vertically into the boss 47 are two draw studs 79 adapted to pass upwardly through a cylinder head 81 of the glass cylinder 75. The head 81 is counter bored underneath to receive the glass cylinder 75 and a gasket 83 is interposed between the two. Acorn nuts 84: serve to draw the head 81 down on the glass cylinder 75.

The forward stud of the studs 79, described, is provided with a longitudinal bore 85 of about diameter, or such diameter as will give a capillary action of oil in said bore. The glass-cylinder head 81 is provided with a recess 87.com1nunicating with the said counter bore. The forward stud 79 passes through this recess 87 and at one of its points of passage therethrough there is bored laterally a hole 89. The hole 89 establishes communication between the glass cylinder and the capillary bore 85. 85 communicates in turn with the lower metallic pump cylinderv 1 (Fig. 2). The stud 7 9 is properly packed against leakage at the head 81 bymeans of packing washers 91 and a nut 93.

Forwardly disposed on the head casting 3 is the upwardly extending spout 95 communicating with the cylinder 1. At the outer and upper exit end of the spout 95 is formed a vertically cylindrical pocket or discharge chamber 97 into which extends upwardly a short length of tubing 99. The upper cylindrical wall of the cylindrical pocket or discharge chamber 97 and the upper end of the tube 99 form an annular space 100 of rela tively large cross section, but relatively small space width at a given point. This construction it has been found, results in a cutting off action of the upper end of the tube 99 on the oil as flow is cut off. The contents of the short tube 99 quickly drop down and very little or no dripping takes place as there are no extended surfaces to drip from.

Around the lower end of the tube 99 formed a dirt and water excluding flange (Fig. 5.) The bore 7 through the check valve 125.

101. The flange 101 also encloses the upper end of the said drip tube 23. There is a notch 103 in the left side of the flange 101 which permits the end of the tube 23 to pass in under and out from under the'flange 103 as the drip tube 23 rotates on its lower bearing 21.

Inasmuch as the upper edge 105 of the drip tube is formed above the lower edge of the cut-off tube 99, there is provided at the said upper edge 105 of said tube 23 a notch 107 adapted to cooperate with said tube 99, permitting passage of the upper end of the drip tube in under the flange 101.

he drip tube 23 and flange 101 are provided with ears 109 and 111 respectively.

Vi hen said tube and flange are in non-delivery position, registering holes in said ears 109 and 111 permit the insertion of a conventional lock therein. It is then impossible to deliver oil elsewhere than to the supply as will appear herein.

The lower end of the toothed piston rod 49 has bolted thereto a piston 113. The piston 113 comprises a hollow crib 115 bolted to said rod 49 and provided with an annular groove 117. Jr port 118 communicates with the hollow interior of the crib. Bolted to the bot tom of the crib 115 is a follower 119, also hollow. Between said crib 115 and said fol lower 117 is interposed an annular leather plunger 121, upwardly flanged along the wall of cylinder 1. The flanged portion of the plunger is held against the cylinder wall 1 by means of an annular coil spring 123 in the groove 117.

The hollow portion of the follower 119 is provided with a ball-check valve 125 which permits passage of oil from the bottom to the top of the piston 113 but not a reverse passage. Upward travel of the piston is limited by its striking an adjusting bolt 127, screwed through the head 3. The head of the adjusting bolt is made excessively long so that ma- 7 chining operations may be performed thereon in order to adapt the bolt to various adjustments of measure.

The supply tank 11 is provided with a hinged lid 129 over its supply opening and a cli p 131 for holding closed said lid. The lid 129 serves as a stand for oil cans and the like which receive their supply of oil from the spout 95.

The operation of the pump is as follows:

The pump, as a unit, is bolted to an oil supply tank. The crank 01 and handle 71 are rotated clockwise (Fig. 2) until the piston 113 is in its lowermost position in the cylinder 1. Air trapped beneath the piston escapes Some oil enters the foot valve 37 and suction pipe 19 due to head pressure in the supply tank.

To prime the pump, the piston is moved up and down between the limits of its stroke, by means of the rack movement described. Air is expelled from the spent 95. As the air is pumped out oil follows, entering the check valve 39 in foot valve 37, rising in the suction pipe 19 and cylinder 1, and finally passing On the other hand as the oil level rises in the glass tube air is forced therefrom through the head passage 87, hole 89, bore and exudes from the lower end of said bore as bubbles in the oil whereupon the bubbles pass up the top surface of spout to the short discharge pipe 99 and to the atmosphere. Air friction in the bore 85 is slight.

The above process continues until oil pours out of the discharge tube 99, into the drip tube 23 and is passed therethrough back to the supply. The drip tube 23 is at this time in position under the spout.

After oil appears in tube 99 the level in the glass cylinder visibly continues to rise, foreing air outas described, until the oil level reaches that of the hole 89 in the forward draw bolt 79.

Now oil. is forcibly pushed down the capillary tube 85. There is no counter current of air therein to resist the passage of the oil down and there is no other path for it to take. Thus the capillary 85 bore fills from above and all air is forced out of the system. WVith the pump primed the pumping or reciprocating movement of the piston may be stopped. The pump is now ready for delivery and will remain so indefinitely. The head of liquid in the suction pipe 19, and the cylinders keeps both. of the check valves 39 and 125 shut. Therefore no oil returns to the supply. The spout 95 is filled to the level of the top edge of the pipe 99.

The glass cylinder 75 is filled. It does not empty down to the level of the top edge of pipe 99 because there is no air available to pass into the glass cylinder above the level of the oil therein. Suction holds the head of oil there- ()il is always present in the glass tube 75 for the customers examination and comparison. It is under the same conditions of reflection and refraction as oil in sample tubes, for physical reasons stated. Its true comparative color may therefore be noted by the purchaser.

The spout or delivery tube 95 is always full and therefore discharge to each customer begins under the same conditions, instead of possible varying. ones, were it possible for the spout 95 togradually drain out.

Discharge to a customer or user is accon'iplished by placing a receptacle beneath the discharge end of the spout 95. This action automatically pushes the-drip tube :23 aside against the reaction of its spring 33. The drip tube 23 rotates on the bearing 21 to its dotted line position shownin Fig. 3.

The piston is now brought to its lowermost position by means of the hand crank. It may be brought to this position without destroying the static relationship between oil heads already described. The piston rod and rack 19 leaving the glass cylinder 75, enters the metal cylinder 1, thereby displacing oil from the lower cylinder to the upper one, the amount of oil passing, equalling the displacements involved. The level of oil in the spout 95 is undisturbed. The glass cylinder remains filled.

Upon stroking the piston once, from lowermost to uppermost position, a given quantity of oil, say a quart, is discharged from the spout 95, by way of the discharge pipe 99.

The receptacle may be withdrawn from below the spout 95 either, when the piston is in its uppermost position or any intermediate position therebelow, after the piston is on its way down from the uppermost position. In either case one accurate unit of measure has been delivered. The oil has sharply stopped its flow, due to the cut-off feature described, and -appreciable dripping has also been prevented.

As many units of measure as desired may be dispensed by repeating the complete piston strokes as described. The customer is aware of his measure by the visible action of the piston rod in the glass tube 75.

Upon withdrawal of the receptacle from under the spout 95, the drip tube 23 springs back into normal position under the spout as described.

Should the small amount of oil gathered on the inner surface of tube 99, gradually gather and drop, the drip tube will return it to the supply. The cleanliness of the pump is apparent, as well as its simplicity, accuracy and economy.

The pump may be locked againstdischarge at any time that no receptacle is in receiving position by passing a conventional padlock through the holes 109 and 111, whereupon all pumping; ends only in returning oil to the reservoir. As described, it does not lose its prime nor does the glass cylinder empty. The spout 95 does not empty.

In view of the above, it will be seen that the several objects of the invention are achieved and other advantageous results attained.

As many changes could be made in carrying out the above constructions without departing from the scope of the invention, it is in the container and cylinder adapted to pump liquid to a discharge tube for the cylinder and to said container, the container automatically discharging air through the restricted means of communication until said container is primed, after which oil is discharged from the upper end of said restricted means, whereby the container is adapted to hold its prime.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification this 6th day of January, 1925.

HARRY D. SMITH. 

